Reign of terror
1979: July 16: Saddam Hussein, vice-president of the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC), becomes president of Iraq, secretary-general of the Baath party and president of the RCC.
1980: March 18: A law is passed providing for the creation of a National Assembly elected by universal suffrage for a mandate of four years.
Sept 22: Saddam invades Iran, launching an eight-year war with around a million deaths.
1981: June 7: The Israeli air force destroys a French-constructed nuclear reactor at Osirak which would have allowed Iraq to make nuclear bombs.
1988: March 17-18: Kurds supporting an Iranian offensive in northern Iraq are brutally suppressed by Baghdad. Some 5,000 are killed in the village of Halabja alone by chemical weapons.
Aug 20: A ceasefire ends the war with Iran. Some 300,000 Iraqis perished in the conflict.
1990: Aug 2: Iraqi troops invade Kuwait.
Aug 6: The United Nations imposes an embargo against Iraq.
1991: Jan 17: US-led Operation Desert Storm is launched.
Feb 27: Kuwait is liberated and Baghdad accepts ceasefire conditions on February 28.
March 7: Allied forces install a no-fly zone to the north of the 36th parallel.
1992: Aug 27: A no-fly zone is created in southern Iraq, to the south of the 32nd parallel.
1993: Nov 26: Baghdad accepts unconditionally UN resolution 715 which provides for the supervision of Iraqi disarmament.
1995: Oct 15: The first presidential referendum since 1979 results in a 99.96% vote in favour of Saddam remaining in power.
1996: Feb 23: Two sons-in-law of Saddam, Hussain and Saddam Kamel, who defected to Jordan in 1995, are murdered three days after their return to Iraq.
May 20: The UN and Iraq sign the oil-for-food programme (resolution 986).
Dec 12: Saddam’s elder son Uday survives assassination bid.
1997: Nov 17: American arms inspectors in the UN inspection team, UNSCOM, are expelled.
The crisis is resolved through Russian intervention nd Baghdad agrees to inspectors’ return.
1998: Dec 16-19: Operation Desert Fox.
500 missiles are launched on Iraq following new tensions between US and Iraq over departure of UN inspectors.
1999: Dec 17: UN Security Council adopts Resolution 1284 setting up new disarmament regime.
2001: May 22: The US and Britain propose a new sanctions regime to the Security Council which would lift restrictions on civilian trade, but would strengthen controls on military items and contraband oil sales. Iraq rejects the project in October.
2002: Oct 15: Saddam is re-elected, winning 100% of the vote with a 100% turnout, according to official figures.
Nov 27: UN arms experts resume inspections in Iraq, which continues to deny it possesses weapons of mass destruction.
Dec 7: Saddam apologises to the Kuwaiti people for invasion.
2003: March 20: The United States launches war on Iraq.
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